Chapter 22
Elior POV
"I understand. I will relay it to my superiors."
Misty nodded.
There really wasn't anything that immediately came to mind that the Magic Council could give me that Irene couldn't.
Money?
Irene had practically stuffed enough gold into my storage ring to make me question whether she was secretly a dragon.
Magic items?
Irene could probably make or enchant most things I needed.
Information?
That was probably the one thing the Council could offer that might actually be difficult for Irene to provide.
So, instead of asking for a reward now, having the Rune Knights owe me a favor seemed like the smarter choice.
A favor from one of the strongest official organizations on the continent could prove useful someday.
"Hey, old man."
I turned toward Grish.
"Take care of yourself."
He smiled.
"And keep the quest reward. I don't need it."
I took out a pouch from my storage ring and tossed it toward him.
He caught it with both hands.
"What is this?"
"Open it."
He hesitated before looking inside.
His eyes widened.
The pouch contained one hundred gold coins.
"Th-this is…"
"Enough to help everyone start over."
I smiled.
"Use it to find a safer place and rebuild your lives."
Grish stared at me in disbelief.
"Elior… this is far too much."
"I don't need it."
I shrugged.
"Besides, I'm pretty sure Irene would yell at me if I came home and complained about not having enough money."
That wasn't even an exaggeration.
Irene had probably put enough gold in my ring to buy several houses.
Grish laughed.
"Hahaha… I understand."
He looked down at the pouch again.
"Thank you."
"Take care of everyone."
I looked around at the villagers one last time.
"Goodbye, guys. Take care of yourselves."
I waved.
Luna, who had been standing on my shoulders and playing with my hair, immediately climbed down.
I picked her up and placed her in her usual spot inside my chest pocket.
She poked her little head out.
"Kyuu~!"
She waved one of her tiny paws.
I couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah, you too."
I transformed into Light and slowly rose into the air.
"Goodbye!"
I began flying away from the village.
"THANK YOU FOR SAVING US!"
I heard the villagers shouting behind me.
I glanced back.
They were standing together at the edge of the village.
Some were waving.
Some were crying.
And several of them were bowing in my direction.
I simply waved once more.
Then I turned forward and continued flying.
I didn't need their thanks.
I had simply done what I believed was right.
(Misty POV)
I watched Elior disappear into the distance.
The villagers continued bowing in the direction he had gone.
Who would have thought that a child no more than ten years old could defeat a demon from the Book of Zeref?
I still couldn't completely believe what I had witnessed.
When he released that pressure earlier…
Even I had been forced to take a step back.
And I wasn't weak.
I was an S-Class mage and the commander of an entire Rune Knight unit.
Yet that pressure had made my body instinctively react.
I had once been fortunate enough to witness a Wizard Saint battle from a safe distance.
The sheer magical presence of those monsters had been overwhelming.
What Elior had released for that brief moment…
It didn't feel inferior.
Maybe he hadn't reached that level yet in actual combat.
But his potential was terrifying.
"Elior, huh…"
I looked toward the direction he had flown.
"The future of mages is certainly bright with people like him around."
I smiled.
Then another thought entered my mind.
"But Fairy Tail…"
I covered my mouth as I giggled.
"The geezers at the Council are going to have a heart attack if he's anything like the rest of them."
I could already imagine the reports.
A seven-year-old Fairy Tail mage defeats a demon from the Book of Zeref.
Destroys a bandit hideout.
Uses enough magical pressure to force an entire Rune Knight unit to its knees.
And probably causes several more disasters in the future.
Just imagining the Council's reaction made me laugh even harder.
"Poor old men."
I shook my head.
Then I looked toward the villagers.
There was work to do.
(Elior POV)
It had been about an hour since we left Little Dale.
The sun was already beginning to sink toward the horizon.
I glanced toward the road ahead.
I could see the outline of a town in the distance.
"Perfect."
I decided to stop there for the night.
After everything that had happened today, I wasn't particularly interested in sleeping in another cave.
I flew toward the town and soon landed outside the gates.
The place was fairly large.
After asking around, I learned that it was called Cranks Town.
It was roughly the same size as Magnolia, which meant it was actually quite a big town.
I found the best inn in the area and booked its most expensive room.
Money wasn't exactly a problem.
With the amount of gold Irene had stuffed into my storage ring, I was probably one of the richest people in Fiore.
Well…
Maybe the king had more.
Probably.
Then again, considering Irene's obsession with storing supplies…
'Maybe the legends about dragons loving treasure really are true.'
I laughed at my own thought.
I took a long, relaxing shower and then decided to give Luna one as well.
She seemed to enjoy it far more than I expected.
"Kyuu~!"
She happily splashed around while I washed her fur.
"You really like this, don't you?"
"Kyuu!"
Afterward, we had dinner together.
I ate a proper meal while Luna drank some milk and ate the food I had prepared for her.
Once we were finished, I collapsed onto the bed.
I was exhausted.
The fight with Rashkel had taken far more out of me than I wanted to admit.
And even though my body had recovered thanks to my magic, mental exhaustion was another matter.
I pulled Luna onto my chest.
"Good night, Luna."
"Kyuu~…"
She curled up against me.
Within minutes, I was asleep.
The next morning, I woke up feeling much better.
I ate breakfast, checked out of the inn, and decided to spend some time exploring Cranks Town before leaving.
Luna was enjoying herself immensely.
She poked her head out of my chest pocket, looking at everything with wide, curious eyes.
For her, this was all new.
People.
Buildings.
Shops.
Food.
Sounds.
She had spent most of her short life inside a mountain and then traveling with me.
A town must have seemed like an entirely different world.
We tried several of the town's specialties.
Luna obviously couldn't eat most of them, but she seemed very interested in anything that smelled good.
Eventually, I decided it was time to leave.
That was when I heard something.
Crying.
I turned my head toward a nearby alleyway.
There was a little girl sitting alone with her head between her knees.
I frowned.
'Is she okay?'
I walked over and crouched beside her.
Then I gently placed a hand on her head.
"Hey, little sister."
She slowly looked up.
"Why are you crying?"
Her eyes widened when she saw me.
"Are… are you talking to me?"
Her voice was nervous.
'Hmm…'
She looked strangely familiar.
I couldn't quite place it.
"Yes."
I smiled warmly.
"Do you see anyone else around?"
She looked around the empty alley.
Then she shook her head.
Before she could say anything, a loud sound came from her stomach.
Growl~
There was a brief silence.
I stared at her.
She stared at me.
Then I burst out laughing.
"Hahaha!"
Her face became red with embarrassment.
"It seems you're quite hungry."
I stood up and offered her my hand.
"Come on. Let's get something to eat."
She looked at my hand but didn't take it.
"My mommy says I shouldn't follow strangers."
She said it with surprising determination.
I blinked.
'She's got a point.'
"That's actually very good advice."
I crouched down again.
"But don't worry."
I pointed toward my right forearm.
"I'm Elior, a mage from the Fairy Tail guild."
I showed her my guild mark.
"See?"
She stared at the mark.
"Fairy Tail…"
Her expression suddenly changed.
"That's the same guild as my dad."
My eyes widened slightly.
'Huh?'
'Don't tell me…'
The little girl seemed to think about it for a few seconds.
Then she nodded to herself as if she had reached an incredibly logical conclusion.
"I am Cana Alberona."
She pointed at herself.
"And since you're from the same guild as my father…"
She nodded firmly.
"I can trust you."
I stared at her.
'That is absolutely not how you're supposed to deal with strangers.'
I couldn't help but smile.
"So that's how you decided?"
She nodded.
"Yes."
I sighed.
"Well… I suppose that's one way of looking at it."
Luna poked her head out of my pocket.
"Kyuu~!"
Cana's eyes immediately moved toward her.
Her sadness disappeared for a moment.
"What's that?"
I smiled.
"This is Luna."
"Kyuu!"
Cana's eyes sparkled.
"She's cute!"
Luna tilted her head.
I looked between the two of them.
Something told me that getting food was no longer going to be a simple meal.